(Washington, D.C.) Congressman Alcee L. Hastings (D-FL) and Senator Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD), Co-Chairmen of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (U.S. Helsinki Commission), will hold a hearing entitled, “Russia, Georgia, and the Return of Power Politics,” on Wednesday, September 10 at 1:30 p.m. in room 2325 of the Rayburn House Office Building.

The hearing will examine Russia’s recent armed intervention into Georgia, the implications for U.S.-Russian relations, and for the European security infrastructure. Last month, Russia invaded Georgia after the Georgian government tried to reassert control of separatist South Ossetia. Russia’s large-scale assault on Georgia and subsequent unilateral recognition of the breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia has drawn deep condemnation from the West and broader international community.

WITNESSES

Mr. Matthew J. Bryza, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, Department of State

The Honorable David Bakradze, Speaker of the Parliament of Georgia and Former Foreign Minister

Mr. Paul A. Goble, Director of research and publications at the Azerbaijan Diplomatic Academy in Baku

Mr. Paul Saunders, Executive Director, the Nixon Center

The Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, also known as the Helsinki Commission, is a U.S. Government agency that monitors progress in the implementation of the provisions of the 1975 Helsinki Accords. The Commission consists of nine members from the United States Senate, nine from the House of Representatives, and one member each from the Departments of State, Defense and Commerce.